This year, Guaranty Trust Bank welcomed hundreds of vendors and thousands of guests to shop, network and engage in with its financial innovations outside of a banking hall. An estimated 100,000 people visited at least one of the bank’s diverse events or engaged with its projects and thousands more were reached through its efforts in media and philanthropy. With events and offerings running the spectrum of food, literature, sports, fashion and entertainment, Guaranty Trust Bank and its affiliate content teams and products have infiltrated nearly every part of our lives and enriched them. None of this would be possible without the visionary leadership of Mr. Segun Agbaje, the CEO of Guaranty Trust Bank and a leader who is always looking to the future.

Segun Agbaje is known for his integrity. This integrity motivates him beyond profit margins and bottom lines to create an innovative environment for his teams that have led to inclusive spaces like the GTB Food and Drink Festival. For me especially, as a chef and restaurateur, having spaces that position Nigeria as a leader in the global conversation on cuisine and legitimizes the work I have dedicated my life to, is affirming. Segun affirms through his work and life that there is integrity in raising others, enabling them and celebrating them.

Segun’s story is even more inspirational when you take into consideration that he was a pioneer staff, helping to establish the bank all the way back in 1991 and has worked there ever since, advancing through sheer hard work and a singular purpose to eventually sit at the head of the entire multinational. Mr. Agbaje has led Guaranty Trust Bank for 8 years, and his time at the helm has been characterized by an unprecedented willingness to trust in the ideas of young people and to offer them opportunities to transform the bank from another boring financial institution into a lifestyle, embodied by its employees, considered aspirational by its customers and respected by its rivals.

8 years in, Guaranty Trust Bank is just as widely known for its interest in short and long-form television, its forays into food and fashion, its long term collaboration to raise awareness for autism. Segun’s unwavering demand for excellence ensures that Guaranty Trust Bank remains an industry leader in every venture it takes on, and it uses its platforms to provide opportunities for its customers.

For his consistency, his vision and his excellent execution, Segun Agbaje shatters all the misconceptions about the power of curiosity and experimentation and the power of a clearly articulated dream.

We need more Seguns in Nigeria and indeed, the world.